Flotation of minerals



PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR FLOTATION on MINERALS.

N 0 Drawing.

[0 all w/wm it may concern Be it known that I, RALPH E. Saran, a citizenof the United States, residing at Pittsburgh, in the county ofAllegheny, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in the Flotation of Minerals, and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same.

tion of minerals,such as sulfid ores and the like, by flotation.

The invention is based upon the discovery that the flotation operationcan, in many cases, be improved by the addition to the of a ketonecondensation product. such as mesityl oxid, phorone, etc. Such ketonecondensation products appear to have,little if any selective action inbringing about the flotation of the mineral, but they have markedfrothing qualities and provide an appropriate amount of froth with anore pulp containing a suitable selective or collecting agent but lackingin frothing qualities, or an ore pulp which requires no added selectiveagent but is lacking in frothing qualities. The ketone condensationproduct may thus be used to advantage with flotation agents which havemarked selective or collecting properties but which are devoid of, ordeficient in, frothing qualities.

he ketone condensation products can be made by condensing two or moremolecules of a ketone, such as acetone, with splitting ofl of water. Ifan acid, such as hydrochloric acid, is employed as the condensing agent,the main condensation products are mesityl oxid, (CH .C:CH.CO.CH rone(CH .C CH.CO.CH C(CH and higher homologues'. With alkaline condensationproducts, acetone yields mesityl oxid and unsaturated cyclic ketones,such as isophorone. The mixtures obtained by both acid and alkalicondensation of acetone have been found to possess great frothing powerand to be well adapted for use in the process of the present invention.A convenient and economical method of manufacture of such condensationproducts is by heating acetone with calcium carbid. Other ketones. suchas methylethylketone, likewise give condens'ation products upon suitabletreatment Specification of Letters Patent.

vprior to the flotation operation.

Patented Mar. 8, 1921.

Anplication filed July 2, 1920. Serial No. 393,607.

with condensing agents. The condensation product of mcthylethylketonewith hydrochloric acid has thus been found to have good frothingproperties and well adapted for use in the process of the invention.

he ketone in any suitable manner Which Will insure its lormincorporation and dissemination through the It may thus be incortatlonoperation can be carried suitable apparatus, such as an ordinary (allowcell, or in apparatus where the air is incorporated in the ore pulp bymechanical agitation.

It is of advantage in many cases, as with certain copper ores, to. addto the ore pulp a small amount of alkali, which may be sufficient inamount to give to the ore a distinct alkaline reaction. When alkalis areused, itis give them an appreciable time of contact out in any cium oxidor hydrate can be used.

he amount of the ketone condensation product added can vary be as littleas one-fifth or one-tenth of a pound per ton of ore (that is, calculatedon the weight of the ore and not of the ore pulp). arger amounts may,however, be used, as well as even smaller amounts in some cases.

The invention will be further illustrated by the following specificexamples of tests made upon a copper sulfid ore:

Ewnmfle Z.500 parts by weight of Utah Copper Companys ore was ground ina pebble mill with 250 parts of water, lime equivalent to four poundsper ton of dry ore, and thiocarbanilid equivalent to onerougher cell,diluted and floated after the addition of the liquid condensationproduct obtained by condensing acetone with calcium carbid,

somewhat, and mayprovide a selective or collecting agent to supplementthe action of the ketone condensa- I tion product, which appears to beessentially that ofa frothing agent with but little selective orcollecting properties. here, however, the ore pulp contains anappropriate selective or collecting agent, or inherently requires theaddition of no. such agent but is deficient in frothing qualities, theaddition of a ketone condensation prodnot, in a manner similar to thatabove described, imparts the desirable frothing qualities, and providesbubbles in suflicient quantity and of sufiicient peristency to overflowinto the launder of the flotation ma chine thereby mechanicallyfacilitating the removal of the mineral concentrate.

It will be evident that, where selective or collecting agents arerequired, different agents may be used having the desiredselective orcollecting or mineral-modifying properties. Certain of these agents,such as thiocarbanilid and diazoaminobenzene, have very marked selectiveor collecting or mineral-modifying properties, but are substantiallydevoid of frothing qualities. The use .of a ketone condensation product,according to the present invention, is therefore of articular value inconnection with the use of floation agents of this character. Thepresent invention can, however, be carried out with the use of otherflotation agents, which may have both selective or collecting andfrothing ualities, but which are deficient in frothing qualities, andthe requisite frothing properties can be imparted by the addition of theketone condensation product, in a manner similar to that abovedescribed.

I claim:

1. The method of effecting the concentration of minerals by flotation,which comprises adding to the mineral .pulp a small amount of a ketonecondensation product, and subjecting the resulting mixture to aflotation operation; substantially as described.

7 small amounts of an alkali, a

2. The method of eflecting the concentration of minerals by flotation,which comprises adding to the mineral pulpa small amount of a selectiveor collecting or mineral-modifying agent, deficient in frothingqualities, together with a small amount of a ketone condensationproduct, and subjecting the resulting mixture to a flotation operation;substantially as described.

3. The method of effecting the concentration of copper sulfid ores byflotation, which comprises adding to the, mineral pulp a small amount ofan alkali and a small amount of a ketone condensation product, andsubjecting the resulting mixture to a flotation operation; substantiallyas described.

4. The method of effecting the concentration of copper sulfid ores byflotation, which comprises adding to the mineral pulp a small amount ofan alkali, a small amount of a flotation agent deficient in frothingproperties, and a small amount of a ketone condensation product, and.subjecting the resulting mixture to a flotation operation;substantially as described.

5. The method of effecting the concentration of minerals by flotation,which comprises adding to the mineral pulp a small amount of an acetonecondensation product, and subjecting the resulting mixture to aflotation operation; substantially as described.

6. The method of effecting the concentration of minerals by flotation,which comprises adding to the mineral pulp a small amount of a selectiveor collecting or mineral-modifying agent, deficient in frothingqualities, together with a small amount of an acetone condensationproduct, and subjecting the resulting'mixture to a flotation operation;substantially as described.

7 The method of effecting the concentration of copper sulfid ores byflotation, which comprises adding to the mineral pulp a small amount ofan alkali and a small amount ofan acetone condensation product, andsubjecting the resulting mixture to a flotation operation; substantiallyas described.

8. The method of effecting the concentration of copper sulfid ores byflotation, which comprises adding to the mineral pulp a small amount ofa flotation agent deficient in frothing properties, and a small amountof an acetone condensation product, and subjecting the resulting mixtureto a flotation operation; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

RALPH E. SAYRE.

